U.S. Athletes Can Wear Sponsors’ Gear at World Championships

The requirement for U.S. athletes to wear Nike-branded apparel at the IAAF World Championships in Beijing is not all-encompassing, and team members with sponsors other than Nike can wear their sponsor’s gear on many occasions during the meet, USA Track & Field has told Runner’s World Newswire.

USATF Public Affairs Officer Jill Geer made those clarifications after six-time national 800-meter champion Nick Symmonds refused to sign USATF’s “Athlete Statement of Conditions” and was left off the team for Beijing. Symmonds, who is sponsored by Brooks, contended the statement’s requirement that team members wear Nike-branded apparel at official team functions could be interpreted to mean the entirety of an athlete’s time in Beijing.

“Of course Brooks would give me concessions in order to compete at the world championships. But it lessens the return on their investment in me. Brooks shouldn't have to make that concession,” Symmonds told Newswire before refusing to sign the Statement of Conditions. (The Statement of Conditions does not apply to shoes. Athletes sponsored by companies other than Nike can run in their shoes of choice when on a U.S. team.)

According to Symmonds, USATF has become increasingly aggressive in enforcing the apparel requirement, which has long been standard for U.S. athletes at global meets such as the Olympics and world championships. Symmonds said was chastised by American officials at the 2014 world indoor meet when he wore Brooks apparel while drinking coffee in a hotel. In presenting his case for not signing the Statement of Conditions, Symmonds displayed a letter USATF sent to prospective team members that was meant to supplement the separate Statement of Conditions. The letter read, in part, “Please pack ONLY Team USA, Nike or non-branded apparel.”

According to Geer, USATF's senior management didn't know about the letter until it was sent, and doesn’t plan to enforce it in Beijing.

“No one on the executive team was aware of the letter” before it went out to athletes, according to Geer, who told Newswire she was stunned when she first saw it. She would not identify its author but said it was written by a lower-level staff member.

“In practice, athletes with conflicting sponsors always pack their personal gear and wear it on personal time, and are allowed by USATF to do so,” said Geer. “When Nick [Symmonds] brought the letter to [senior management’s] attention, we clarified that fact to him. That letter as written will not be in future team kits.”

In a phone call with Newswire, Symmonds acknowledged that USATF told him they would not enforce the restrictions implied in the letter. Symmonds said, however, that the crucial issue for him remained the lack of clarity on “team function.” Symmonds told Newswire he asked USATF to change the Statement of Conditions to more clearly define that term. USATF CEO Max Siegel has said that, under USATF rules, the earliest the Statement of Conditions can be changed is at the USATF annual meeting in December.

USATF’s definition of “team function” remains ambiguous. A USATF press release about Symmonds being left off the Beijing team stated that athletes have to wear Nike-branded national team attire “when they represent the United States in National Team competitions, award ceremonies, official Team press conferences, and other official Team functions tied to these National Team events.”

Geer declined to elaborate on what constitutes “other team functions.”

“Given that Nick has threatened litigation in the matter, it’s not appropriate to get into definitions of a document [the Statement of Conditions] that is being debated,” she told Newswire.

Nonetheless, Geer said, “USATF clearly does not prohibit athletes from wearing personal gear outside of official areas, in their personal time at meets. For example, athletes at every world championships and Olympic Games attend press conferences and receptions at their personal sponsors’ hospitality areas.” In other words, Brooks athletes can wear Brooks gear to Brooks events. She added that the one-page Statement of Conditions “does not restrict what athletes pack or wear on personal time away from team areas and events.”

Symmonds is weighing legal responses to being left off the world championships roster.

“I just got off the phone with [the Track & Field Athletes Association] and one of their legal counsel to discuss options. I’ll take the weekend to figure it out,” Symmonds told Newswire on Friday. He said one option would be to file a USOC Section 9 complaint form for “alleged denial of an opportunity to compete.” Symmonds said he’ll announce his plans on Monday via social media.

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